Atheist Bill Maher: 'Why in Heaven's Name Don't We Tax Religion?'

Atheist and television host Bill Maher said on his show “Real Time” that since taxes are levelled on bad things in society, they should also be levelled against religion.

"If we levy taxes — sin taxes, they call them — on things that are bad to get people to stop doing them, why in Heaven's name don't we tax religion?" asked the well-known atheist, according to The Christian Post.

Maher added that religion is “A sexist, homophobic, magic act that's been used to justify everything from genital mutilation to genocide. You want to raise the tax on tobacco so kids don't get cancer? Okay, but let's put one on Sunday school so they don't get stupid."

Maher added that percentage of Americans who are committed to faith is decreasing:

"Americans are losing their religion because they're catching on that religions do much more harm than good. Who enabled child sex abuse for centuries? What's the common thread between ISIS, al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, and most other terrorist groups in the world? Who's behind the new law in Mississippi that says Mississippi now cannot, among other things, force a baker to bake for a gay wedding?"

Religion has been steadily declining, asserted Maher. "And since then, religion has become much less popular, especially with younger people. Thirty-five percent of millennials want nothing to do with it, and the rest worship an ancient Jew born over 2,000 years ago: Bernie Sanders,” he quipped to applause from the audience.

Although Maher believes religion is responsible for many of the evils in society, The Christian Post notes that Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias recently spoke about what happens to a society when religion and morality are done away with:

“The 20th century became the bloodiest century in history,” Zacharias said, mentioning China and Russia specifically. “And the reason it became the bloodiest century is … the weapons of our wars were piling up and there were no guiding principles to take us anywhere.”